Faults:

When I purchased the car, it was very poorly painted with hand painted racing stripes in PVA (house paint). I thus decided to strip the car and prep for a respray... that's when everything started to go wrong. I found massive amounts of body filler, and the front right fender had been appallingly brazed on... There were also rust holes into which one could hide a size 10 work boot. Be that as it may, I repaired the body and had it running sweetly... until it ran bearings, which I am currently busy rebuilding the motor to remedy.

General Comments:

They are things of beauty, and the best front drive I have had the privilege of piloting. The little V4 makes a superb burble at idle and roars with the ferocity of a larger power plant when putting the hammer down. I believe that had I acquired a looked after version, it would still be my daily driver, as opposed to a project. But seeing as how magnificent it was before I embarked on the rebuild of the motor, I cannot wait to have it grunting down some country back roads again.

Also bearing in mind the ground clearance and high profile tyres, it is especially fun on a nice dirt track.

As with all older cars, some are lemons, but with a Lancia Fulvia it is most certainly worth the risk. Just bear with in mind they do occasionally require some 'surprise maintenance'.

Faults:

Overheating, which I have not yet managed to solve.

Carburettor balance issues, but with two twin choke carbs, it is rather ambitious to try and remedy them without a flow gauge.

The seat belt mounting points are badly worn (but that gives me an excuse to upgrade to a three point belt).

Rubbers are perished (but then again, for a 40 year old car that has suffered much, it's nothing to cry about).

General Comments:

Superbly comfortable car, with very balanced handling... Especially for a front drive car. It is also VERY prone to lift off oversteer...

It has a brilliant sound for a four cylinder engine. It may have very little torque, but certainly makes up for it with a very sharp throttle response and high revs.

It was in appalling condition when I purchased it, and required about the same as the asking price to get it roadworthied.

Previous owner had coated the car in a massive amount of body filler, but once removed, I was lucky in that the overall condition was not too dreadful.

The ground clearance is brilliant for a car with sporty ambitions. This is something vital in South Africa (where the roads are in rather poor condition).

Faults:

The car was advertised on Ebay as a roadworthy older restoration, and I bought it for (US$5,200). It was one of the only ones I have seen in 20 years for sale locally. I had looked at two cars for sale in Europe, but they needed major repairs.

My Fulvia 1.3S Coupe required new brake pads all around, a brake proportioning valve and a new master cylinder (US $1,200 total). I had engine, trans and shock bushings replaced as a precaution (US $400). To pass US Pennsylvania State Inspection, it required some electrical restoration; the grounds were poor and the euro style lights were very dim. The reverse lamp was also euro style, not allowed in PA. The new halogen sealed beams are fantastic, but the total electrical work was (US $1,700).

I installed some period 1970 seatbelts and discovered I need to lose some weight :-)

I have also discovered that the heater core is disconnected, and there is a small crack in the spare magnesium Chromadora wheel.

Right before I bought it, a new head gasket was installed, the valves lapped and dual Solex 2BBL carbs adjusted ($900.00).

The car when purchased was imported from Sicily to the USA in May 2003. It needed some minor body repair above the right rear wheel arch; it is missing the factory ID badge (located a replica HF badge on Ebay!!!). The car has no headrests or bumpers, but has the bumper hole covers. The paint was in good shape, generally, and the only rust visible is in the underpanel holes in trunk.

The KM speedometer moves, but is way out of calibration. All of the other indicators and gauges work fine.

General Comments:

My car is Lancia Red and is named Sylvia, after Sylvia Plath, who I thought of when I got the bills for repairs.

The Lancia Club predicted my experience perfectly, and recommended a S1 car, with the excellent 4-speed, but the rear drum brakes on a S1 are not as good as the 4W Discs on the S2.

The car is fantastic to drive, with little torque steer and good balance.

I would say though, that the steering is slow and a bit heavy to park, like 6 turns lock to lock.

The 5-speed is a little tricky on the 1-2 upshift - double clutch is best. The motor roars like a brute, and attracts major attention on the street. It has amazing room for such a small car.

Huib Geeruink (viva-lancia.com) and Mike Kristick (Lancia Spares, Wellsville, PA USA) have been a major help with tech support and spares respectively. I have located another Fulvia owner nearby my home and I look forward to touring this summer.

One small note; I had some personal difficulty right after I bought this car, otherwise I would have done more of the work myself. Admittedly, I am a huge Lancia fan, so take my word with a grain of Arborio.